From the Bookshelf of Reading the Detectives…

A Man Lay Dead (Roderick Alleyn, #1)

Ngaio Marsh

Start date: January 1, 2018

Finish date: January 31, 2018

Discussion: Group Challenges

Why we're reading this: The first book in our Ngaio Marsh/ Inspector Alleyn challenge
[close] The first book in our Ngaio Marsh/ Inspector Alleyn challenge

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Showing 2 of 168 topics — 7,793 comments total

Group Challenges

* Sept 25: The Mystery of the Blue Train (1928) by Agatha Christie
By Susan · 16 posts · 18 views

last updated Sep 12, 2025 08:12PM

* Sept 25: The Mystery of the Blue Train (1928) - SPOILER Thread
By Susan · 9 posts · 19 views

last updated 6 hours, 55 min ago

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What Members Thought

Jun 26, 2018 Shabbeer Hassan rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: whodunit, 2018, brit-lit, mystery, 2024

A rather hodge-podge shambling mess of a book filled with murders, espionage and the weirdest case of "murder by a basket full of coincidences".

My Rating - 3/5 ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Feb 12, 2015 Ruskoley rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, book-1

This is the first Marsh I've read. I didn't love it like I loved Christie or Stout's firsts. However, there is a lot here to recommend any number of future Marsh reads!

The novel is witty and engaging, although a small percentage of the humor and wit is lost because of the age and cultural distance of the current day American reader.

The crime seems a little convoluted, but what crime novels don't have this? The phobia of Russians/Russia is why I docked this a full star.

Overall, vintage mystery ...more

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Jan 19, 2018 Yorky Caz rated it liked it

Interesting start. I am not sure what I make of Roderick Alleyn yet. I liked the story not sure on the writing its got hints of agatha Christie but not sure if thats just because its a country house murder!

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